SINGAPORE – President Halimah Yacob will represent Singapore at the official mourning of United Arab Emirates (UAE) President Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Monday (May 16) in Abu Dhabi.
Sheikh Khalifa, a pro-Western moderniser who aligned the Gulf Arab state closer to the United States and its allies, died on Friday at the age of 73. He was born in 1948 and had rarely been seen in public since suffering a stroke in 2014.
Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said on Monday that President Halimah will be accompanied by Dr Maliki Osman, who is Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office, and Second Minister for Foreign Affairs and Education.
They will also be joined by officials from the President’s Office and MFA.
During President Halimah’s absence, Mr Eddie Teo, chairman of the Council of Presidential Advisers, will exercise the function of the Office of the President, MFA said.
President Halimah and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong sent their condolences to the UAE on Saturday following the death of Sheikh Khalifa.
